P'burg Halts Kids' Comeback 21-14 Scholastic Football

November 02, 1985|by TED MEIXELL, The Morning Call

It would probably be unfair to characterize Phillipsburg's 21-14 victory over Northampton before a large and enthusiastic crowd at Maloney Field as winning ugly. But even the Stateliners would probably agree that it wasn't artistic - and sure was winning the hard way.

As they had done a few times earlier this year, the 'Liners managed to grab a 7-0 lead by halftime and build it to 21-0 while at the same time taking a statistical licking. And then they had to hold their collective breaths as Dick Snell's Konkrete Kids mounted a furious last-ditch rally.

In fact, the Kids battled back to within 21-14 when quarterback Paul Kornfeind sneaked over with his second one-yard touchdown and added a two- point conversion pass to Curt Beer with 4:30 left - and they got the ball back again at their own 44-yard line with 2:06 left for one last chance to win.

But, on fourth-and-five, hobbling Stateliner senior Tim Miers picked off a Kornfeind pass at his own 21 to seal the victory. It left them at 7-1 in East Penn Conference play, still in the running for EPC laurels a half game back of Bethlehem Catholic, which is 8-1. The K-Kids, in dropping to 6-3, probably lost all hope of an EPC title.

"I picked up a lot more grey hairs in that last quarter," Phil Rohm acknowledged. "I thought we played really well for three quarters, but then we fumbled the ball away and started picking up a lot of penalties. And we know how good Northampton is, they can score quickly, and Kornfeind is really dangerous. But we came up with a tough stand to stop them on that last series. It's a big win for us, a tremendous win."

Tim Hornbaker, P'burg's speedy wide receiver-safety-all-purpose return man broke up a fierce scoreless defensive struggle 6:20 before intermission with one of the big plays he's become known for. A punt by Northampton's Dan Howard bounced high from the P'burg 28, in front of Hornbaker. The punt was well covered, but when it bounced the Kids relaxed. At the last instant, Hornbaker grabbed the ball at his 20, sped past the surprised Kids to the left sideline, juked past Howard at the Northampton 40 and breezed in for a thrilling 80-yard score.

"He's just a big play player," Rohm said. "I don't know if there's a better one in New Jersey, or, maybe even Pennsy."

The K-Kids, though, had another version of the long punt return. "I didn't see it," Snell admitted, "but my kids came off the field and said they stopped (pursuing the ball) because he (Hornbaker) signalled for a fair catch."

Hornbaker denied the charge, saying he didn't move his arms at all.

P'burg upped its lead when Bill Snyder capped an eight-play, 53-yard third-quarter drive with a two-yard touchdown toss to Scott Westcott, after setting it up with a 16-yarder to Hornbaker to the Kids' four. Then, after Eric Opitz recovered a fumble at the Northampton 48, the 'Liners drove to a 21-0 bulge with 8:43 left when Jeff Loveatz scampered 20 yards over right guard.

Suddenly, but belatedly, Kornfeind got his offense in full gear - avoiding the turnover and penalty pitfalls that had stopped them repeatedly earlier. On two straight possessions, Northampton drove 56 and 35 yards to score, Kornfeind sneaking over from the one both times. But, althgough the Kids got one more legitimate shot, Miers ended the drama with his interception.

The stats told a story that would normally lead to a different outcome: Northampton piled up a 17-8 edge in first downs, a 221-103 bulge on the ground and a 289-187 advantage in total offense.

The turnovers were even, at four each. But the Kids', in the end, were more telling. And, the Stateliners would be quick to point out, that's why the guy who invented this game placed the premium on points, not stats.